Cardionovum: As DEBs Heat Up, Who Needs The US Market?

German serial entrepreneur Michael Orlowski achieved a successful exit in his first cardiovascular device company, EuroCor, by selling not to a US-based giant, but to an Indian conglomerate, Opto Circuits. His new company, Cardionovum, has developed a next-generation drug-eluting balloon whose novelty rests on a different approach to the coating technology designed to produce better drug-elution. With CE mark in hand, Cardionovum is preparing to launch its products in Europe. The US is a logical next target, but the high cost of clinical trials and the ever-lengthening regulatory approvals process has made the US an even more difficult market to penetrate, forcing companies like Cardionovum to contemplate strategies that bypass or put off a US launch.